Blackjack Hand Signals: How to Hit, Stand, Double and Split

At a blackjack table, you show each move with your hand: tap the table to hit, wave a flat hand over your cards to stand, and place a second bet next to the first, then point one finger to double or make a V to split. In online blackjack, you press a button for each move instead, so you never need the gestures.

• Why Blackjack Uses Hand Signals
• Blackjack Hand Signals Table
• The Hit Signal and the Stand Signal
• Doubling and Splitting: Placing the Extra Bet
• Surrender and Insurance
• At an Online Live Table: Buttons and Time Limits

01Why Blackjack Uses Hand Signals

At a land-based table, the room is loud and the dealer can mishear a word. A hand signal is clear, and the camera over the table records it.

Here you have hard 12 and the dealer's up card – the card the dealer shows – is a 4. The chart says stand.

• Land-based table: wave a flat hand over your cards.
• Online: press Stand. The game reads your move exactly.

Victoria's tip

Learn the signals once so you know what the other players and the dealer are doing on a live video table. Then use the buttons.

02Blackjack Hand Signals Table

There are two kinds of tables: face-down games and face-up games. In a face-down game, you hold your cards in one hand, usually with 1 or 2 decks.

In a face-up game, the cards come face up from the shoe – the box the cards are dealt from. You do not touch the cards.

03The Hit Signal and the Stand Signal

Here you have hard 16 and the dealer's up card is a 10. The chart says hit.

At a face-up table, you tap the felt behind your cards. The dealer gives you one more card.

Here you have hard 17 against a dealer 9. The chart says stand on 17 against every up card.

• Face-up game: wave a flat hand over your cards. The dealer moves to the next player.
• Online: press Stand. Your turn ends.

The full set of moves is on the blackjack strategy chart.

04Doubling and Splitting: Placing the Extra Bet

To double, put chips equal to your first bet next to it, not on top of it. Then point one finger, and the dealer gives you exactly one card.

With 11 against a 6, doubling averages +0.674 per first bet, and hitting averages +0.337. More on this move is on the double down page.

To split, put a second bet equal to the first next to it and make a V with two fingers. The dealer separates the pair into two hands.

• Never touch your first bet after the cards are dealt.
• The extra bet always goes beside the first bet.
• See which pairs to split on the when to split page.

05Surrender and Insurance

Surrender means you give up your hand and get half your bet back. Not every table offers it, and the standard rules on this site have no surrender.

Insurance is a side bet you can make when the dealer's up card is an ace. It costs up to half your original bet.

The house edge on insurance is 7.4%. Read the details on the surrender and insurance pages.

06At an Online Live Table: Buttons and Time Limits

At a live dealer table, a real dealer deals on video and you press buttons on your screen. You do not use hand signals.

1. The dealer deals the cards.
2. When it is your turn, the buttons light up: Hit, Stand, Double, Split.
3. A timer counts down while you choose.
4. If the timer runs out, the game makes a default move for you. The help screen of each game shows which move.

Here you have hard 11 against a dealer 10. The chart says double, so you press Double before the timer runs out.

In a software game with no live dealer, there is usually no timer. Some games also let you use keyboard keys, and the help screen lists them.

Victoria's tip

Practice the moves without a timer in the blackjack trainer, so you can answer quickly at a live table.

Questions people ask